Tips for finding your place and job in UX when you are not a visual designer

1. When UX is not visual
design
Mags Hanley, GA UXDi instructor, Information Architect and UX Consultant

2. UX roles that are not visually design-focused
 UX consultant/ strategist
 Content strategist
 Information architect
 User researcher
 Service designer
 Product manager

3. UX Consultant/strategist
What aspect of UX that they focus on? Using user research and design techniques to
understand the problems of the business and the
users, and design a solution.
Techniques include:
• Affinity diagramming
• Contextual enquiry
• Design studios
• User interviews
• Report writing and presentations
Where are these roles? Consultancies, UX Agencies
How do you connect to them? Network to others in the desired companies
Is it right for you? It's right if you like problem solving and working
with people

4. Content strategist
What aspect of UX that they focus on? Focusing on the content that needs to be created and
deseminated for an organisation's users
Techniques include:
• Audience identification and persona development
• Mapping workflows for the creation of content
• Content strategy – what content and why?
• User interviews
• CMS analysis
• Developing briefs for content
Where are these roles? Publishers like Pearson, Media companies, companies
who publish lots of information such as eBay and Telstra
How do you connect to them? Go to meetups like Content Strategy
Is it right for you? It's right if your focus is content, writing, style guides
and ensuring the correct content is created for users.

5. Information architect
What aspect of UX that they focus on? Focusing on how people find information and creating
navigation, labelling and structures
Techniques include:
• User research into information seeking
• Search log analysis
• Content analysis
• Card sorting
• Development of taxonomies
• Designing search engines
Where are these roles? Retailers for their product catalogues and search
engines, publishers, intranets
How do you connect to them? Join IA Institute, go to Content strategy meetups
Is it right for you? It's right if your focus is the way people find information,
like labelling and language, and think in an organised
way.

6. User researcher
What aspect of UX that they focus on? Focusing on how people use technology; their underlying
needs and wants that can be supported by technology
Techniques include:
• User research
• Contextual enquiry
• Discount usability methods
• User interviews
• Usability testing
• Report writing
Where are these roles? Organisations with mature UX groups, government, UX
agencies
How do you connect to them? Join UXPA and CHI. Talk to people in UX agencies
Is it right for you? It's right if your focus is on why and how people use
technology; if you like psychology.

7. Service Designer
What aspect of UX that they focus on? Focusing on how user or customer experience can design
a service across multiple channels such as instore, call
centres and online.
Techniques include:
• Affinity diagramming
• Contextual enquiry
• Design studios
• User interviews
• Customer journey mapping
• Service strategy
• Report writing and presentations
Where are these roles? Consultancies such as Accenture (Fjord), smaller
agencies such as Meld and Tobias & Tobias. Client-side
such as banks, telcos, retailers and higher education
How do you connect to them? Talk to people in Agencies and large organisations
Is it right for you? It's right if your focus is on the big picture; designing the

8. Product manager
What aspect of UX that they focus on? Focusing on the product and how it meets both the
business' and users' needs.
Techniques include:
• Affinity diagramming to identify the business needs
• Contextual enquiry
• User interviews
• Customer journey mapping
• Product roadmaps
• Product specifications
• Report writing and presentations
Where are these roles? Client-side such as banks, telcos, retailers and higher
education.
Startups such as Atlassian and Envato
How do you connect to them? Talk to people in large organisations, go to Prosuct
Anonymous meetups
Is it right for you? It's right if your focus is on the product and its features.

9. Thank you
Mags Hanley
Twitter: magshanley